Westshire Farms At the Lake

Let me just say that the review that was posted about "beware when you want to check out" is right on the mark. It has been 19 months since my mother passed away and we have not been notified of the condo being sold yet! In fact, I'd say they are in no rush to do so. This is the only thing of value of my mother's estate and has been held up to close because of this property and how it is managed. When my mother signed her lease, they were obligated to pay the 90% back within 6 months. That has long passed. And, indeed there are cases that have been filed against this property for lack of payment within the legally agreed upon time. I have considered filing a claim, but I have not done that as I feel it really won't make any difference anyway. It will just add to the list. Trying to get a response to your inquiries is almost impossible unless you show up in person and catch the agent by surprise. You are not able to call and make an appointment with the real estate representative as she will always "be busy or not at the office". It's near impossible to locate an email adress as well. And, let's not forget the time that the elevator was "out of service" for more than 6 weeks before it was fixed. I will say that when my mother lived there, she was very happy and made a lot of freinds that supported her until she passed away. She enjoyed all of the activities that she was able to take part in. The overal community life was very nice.

I’ve only been living here since last year, but I’m so very happy to be here. Every single day I look around at my place and give thanks that I chose to live here. I was widowed a few years ago, and could no longer maintain our house of 39 years on 1/2 acre. I’d looked into other places, but after having a tour at Westshire, I knew this was it for me. I have friends who’ve lived here for many years, and I know they’re happy, so I had no doubts. There are plenty of activities and some of my friends just love them, although I haven’t been active in any. However, I know I can at any time. Community lunches (optional) are served twice a week, and periodic health check services, etc. are available. So, you can chose how active you’d like to be. Personally, I love people and am so glad to stop and chat, but I also cherish solitude. I live in one of the condo units, and have never been bothered by noise from other units. My balcony overlooks the woods, and I love watching turkeys, sandhill cranes, deer and so many birds. In the winter when the leaves are off the trees, I’ve got a perfect view of the lake, and can see the ice fishing shanties. I just love it! And I was thrilled to watch Independence Day fireworks from my own living room and balcony, close up and personal! Wow! As I’ve lived in Delavan for 40 years, one of the pluses for me is to walk to my bank a block away. So I’ve got the country and town together. I’m in my mid-70’s, so I accept that I’ll be getting frailer as time passes. There are home health services through the Aurora and Mercy health systems, so that’s reassuring to me. I’ve read the other two reviews here, both of which can certainly discourage a person from looking further into this. As I haven’t been here long enough to know what happened with the first party who had such a nightmare receiving their money, I would assume this was a one-time debacle, as I’ve never read or heard of lawsuits against Westshire for reneging on their contracts. This is a nonprofit organization with legal checks and balances, so whatever happened, I sympathize with the party, but can’t imagine it’s an ongoing problem. As for the “Complete rip-off” comments, I wouldn’t give a second thought to an anonymous blanket statement which says no one is getting their money back. (Even the first party received their 90% refund, so that disproves the “nobody...” statement.) I’ve rambled way too long. Let me end by suggesting that you come and take a tour. Bring a list of questions, concerns, etc. to ask the management. And especially, meet some residents and ask them for their opinions of this place. What do they like about it? And what don’t they like (nothing is perfect, so see if there are any grumbles). That would tell you more than any review could possibly state, and you’d then have a much clearer idea of whether you’d like to live here. As for me? This is my beloved home from now the end of my days!

Nice place to live, but beware when it is time to leave. They are contractually bound to buy out your lease at the sooner of the re-leasing of the unit or 18-24 months after you turn the unit over to them. [Removed] is the exclusive broker handling the leasing. She is completely unresponsive during the process and won't respond to phone calls or emails from past residents or their family inquiring about the status of the re-leasing efforts and their money. In our case, we just learned that they had re-leased my mother-in-law's condo sometime in the fall of 2016 and never sent her the money she was due or contacted her. When we finally sent a [ Removed] letter we got an apology and check in April. We had called [Removed]numerous times in the intervening months without a return call, yet they claimed they didn't know how to reach us. If this is how they treat a person who used to volunteer every week in the office with [Removed], I can't imagine how they would treat a regular resident.

Complete ripoff. They take your money for the life lease and promise to pay you back 90% when you leave. No one is getting their money back. Do not pay for a life lease at Westshire Lakes.